Cooling apparatus



May 10, 1932. B. J HALL COOLING APPARATUS Filed Aug. '25, 1930 PatentedMay 10, 1932 'BENJAMiN JAMES newt, oa -Lennon, ENG ND COOLING APPARATUSThis invention relates to a means for cooling-and maintaining ina coolcondition surfacessuch as those used in duplicating or printingprocesses and for :otherpurposes. a

:55 In the production and manipulation of gelatinerand -other colloidalfilms or layers for;photoemechanical and like duplicating processes itis found thatthe temperature of the workingsurface of the :film or layermust 30 hemaintained lowerthan the :particulartemperature at'which thecolloid employed becomestacky. lVith a viewzto maintaining the workingsurface at theanecessary low tem .peratu-re iitl-has been proposedtoreduce the 615 temperature cilia room in which the process is carried.-out, and it has already been proposed ;as:- an alternative to reducingthe temperature'of the-roomwa-sa whole to distributewthe oolloidaltfilmor layer upon a metal i210 plate or -sh-eetxlwhich rests upon ice orcold water'orother cooling medium; Bothof these methods, however,have-serious drawg hacks, for when ;a.-I?oom;is-c001ed Jay the admission1of;cold-airthisresults in the rapid absorptionkof: moisture from theworking surface -of.--the:colloidal layer, which {renders ,thesurfaceineffective for satisfactory dupli- V catingworlcopying, despitethe fact that the temperature thereof is maintained at the nec- 3 essarylow level. In a case wherethe colloidal layer iissdepesited npon a metalplate in contact With .ice or -water the quantity of cooling inaterialemployed is unavoidably 'much greater than the :minimumiquantity whichwould bringTa'bout the-necessarylow temper- :ature. Moreover, the-surface area of the ,plateris much restricted and such installation :isto all-intents-iand purposes immobile.

T-he present.invention-has for an iobject to, rov-ide improved 111163113for :theqrapid coo ing of surfaces and for maintaining them ata lowertemperature =than-thewsu-rrounding atmosphere-without-said sun-facesthemselves coming \into -direct-contact with the primary coolingmedium,of which latter a minimum quantity (is-employed.- According to the;present invention means foimcoolingandmaintaining cool a; surfacecomprise 5311- endless ductfor the passage of 59 air, "the, outerfacecofwapart of-the wall of said duct.

W Application filed:Aug-ust'25, 1'930,Seria1-1 1'o. 477,684, :an'd inGreaLBr-itain irune26, 1980, j

which duct constitutes a surface to becooled, means for producing aflowof air around said. duct, and a container forcooling medium located inthe] path of airfloWingarounfd V Preferably, that part of the wall oflhe duct the outer face of. which constitutes a surface to be cooled isdisposed suhstane tially horizontally, whilst the'duct 'itsel'f,.'.isdisposedgtherebeneath and is such that air 60 flowing "l continuouslytherearoundf passes through the coolingmedium, alongthe-underside ofsaid part of the duct wall from, end

toend, then in-areverse directionhack totheycoolino';n1ediu1n,.and'soon. i y

In the application .of the. 'vmprov ed means accordingto the inventionfor the .PIOdl1C-, ti'onlandmanipu'lation of gelatineand other colloidal'filins or layers forphotmmec'hanical and like' duplicating processes,that part of the-wall of the ,ductfthe outer faceof which constitutes, asurface to he cooled .is preferably disposed, horizontally and isadapted ,to constitute a support for the horizontal part of,anendless'rband on. whichethere is de posited a layer ;of colloidalmaterial which it is required to maintain ,at" a temperature vlowerithanthat ofzthe ambient atmosphere.

Preferablyyin such a caseflthe duot isiof substantially triangularformation and ,is so shaped. as a; wholel so asito fitiwithin the-spaceenclosed hyra .continuous hand which travels around three horizontalrollers, so disposed that theband travels-for, a short distanceiventically, then horizontally fora considerable distance, andthendownwardly at an angle, 'l"lie duct is preferably, arranged so,thatgthe bandisvincontactwith the outerwwall ,thereof whilst travellinghorizontally and Lalso whilst travelling downwardly at ,an.angle. Themeans for producing V a flow; of {air around the ,duct may comprise oneor gmore fans mounted withimtheduct near that roller from which i thehand I travels) horizontally, whilstthereisalso mountedintheg-ducuhejlow said fans one or more containers forricefor othercoo-linginediu n,through which the air Y can .pass from the downwardlyinclined {portion'of the-duct'.on-its way to the faniqrp flns. I

,The invention is illustratedgbyltliezgaccom- $1.

' panying drawing, the figure representing a ly'inclined wall 17, sothat the linoleum band 11 which is in contact with said walls 16 anddiagrammatic longitudinal section of the apparatus.

' As shown, the improved means are fitted to an apparatus of known typecomprising a casing 1 in which an endless band 11 of linoleum or thelike, which has deposited thereon a layer of gelatine or other colloidalmate-.

rial in known manner, is mounted to travel over three rollers 12, 18'and 14, the arrangement being such that although the whole surface ofthe band 11 is employed for duplicating purposes, very little space isoccupied, whilst any part of the band may readily-be made accessible byrotating one of the rollers 12, 13 or 14: by hand to bring that part ofthe hand between the rollers 12 and 13. In the ordinary way thisparticular part of theband would be supported upon a table or upon aplate resting upon ice or other cooling medium; according to the presentinvention, however, the substantially triangular space enclosed by theband 11 is occupied by a continuous duct 15 for air, the improved meansaccording to the present invention being emp'loyed for cooling the upperhorizontal wall 16 of the duct and also the lower downward- 17 and thegelatine or' other colloidal material deposited thereon are maintainedat the" closed by a' partition'EZO, whilst thespace 21 enclosed by theinner walls 22 is left vacant.

The fan or fans 19 are such that when in operation air is caused to flowaround the duct in the direction shown by the arrows,

. passing from the containers 18 for the cooling medium to fans alongthe horizontal part of theduct and back along the downwardly inclinedpart of the duct to said containers 18. It will be observed that withsuch an arrangement according to the invention a minimum of coolingmaterlal is required to maintain the surface at the necessary lowtemperature, for as the duct 15 is entirely en' closed the air passingto the cooling medium will be already at a temperature considerably Ilow-er than that of the ambient atmosphere.

Thus, it will be observed that waste of the cooling medium employed isreduced so far as possible consistent with the necessary absorption ofheat from tained cool. I V I r Theuse of an apparatussuch as that de-Lscribed above. with reference to the accompanying drawing is applicableparticularly to those tables designed for use in the prepathe surface tobe main-' =that-the duct may containbaffles or filters in order thateddying flow'may be produced, so causing an increased cooling effect,whilst in some cases it may be desirable to provide a breather or safetyvalve to prevent undue pressure within the duct or ducts. For example,valves may be provided whereby said pressure may be maintained in anydesired manner, and those parts 'of'the duct, except that whichconstitutes a surface tobe cooled or which is in contactwith the surfaceto be cooled, maybe enclosed by insulating mate rial to prevent theabsorption of heat thereby.

What I claim is w f 1. An apparatus of the class described, comprising acasing formed with an endless duct open to the'atmosphere at one end,roll ers mounted outside the casing to receive a band of material to betreated, peripheries of the rollers being in a plane with the outersurfaces of the top and bottom of the casing, and means in the openendof the casing for introducing coolair to the endless duct to reduce thetemperature of the top and bottom of the casing, whereby the contactingsurfaces of a belt passing aroundthe rollers are cooled. p 2. Anapparatus of the class described, comprising a casing formed with an airpassage,of means for guidinga flat strip of material over the outersurface of the Wall forming the passage, a container in the casing for acooling medium for cooling the air, and means for forcing the cooled airthrough the passage, whereby the surface of a flat strip of 7 materialpassing over the outer wall of the passage is'coole v r,

3. An apparatus of the class described, comprising a casing having a'horizontal top and a bottom which inclines from! one end of the casingto the other, said casing being 0 en at its wide end, a continuous ductformed 1n the casing-means for introducing cool air to the duct, andmeans on the outsideof the casing for supporting a band of material tobe cooled in contact with the outer surface of the horizontal andinclined surfaces of said cas- 4. An apparatus lar" form, a continuousduct formedin the caslng, means for forcing cool air through r of theclass described, comprising a casing of substantially trianguthe duct,rollers mounted outside the casing to V i receive aband of material tobetreated, one

of said rollers being mounted'at the apex-of the casing and two ,of saidrollers beingfl mounted at the larger end of the casing, the

-peripheries of all the rollers being in alignment with the top andbottom outer surfaces of the casing to retain the material being treatedin contact with said surfaces to be 5 cooled by the cool airpassing-through the duct.

BENJAMIN JAMES HALL.

